Data as of Nov 4, 2026.
ARLU vs GMAR: Cap, Buffer & Days Left
As of Nov 4, 2026 ARLU can fall 12.1% before its buffer engages and GMAR 9.6%, and GMAR resets 12 days sooner.
askIQ about this page
askIQ about ARLU and GMAR
Net assets on Nov 3, 2026: $54m for AllianzIM U.S. Equity Buffer15 Uncapped ETF - Apr and $425m for FT Vest U.S. Equity Moderate Buffer ETF - March.
ARLU: reference +17.9% since period start, fund +12.8%; buffer 0 to −15; no cap; No cap. Data to Nov 4, 2026.
ARLU: reference +17.9% since period start, fund +12.8%; buffer 0 to −15; no cap; No cap. Data to Nov 4, 2026.GMAR: reference +18.2% since period start, fund +9.7%; buffer 0 to −15; cap +14.1%; At its cap. Data to Nov 4, 2026.
Data to Nov 4, 2026.Pair scorecard
ARLU costs 0.11 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 5.3 points; GMAR is 7.9 times larger.
Points (pts) are percentage points.
| Measure | ARLU | GMAR |
|---|---|---|
| Return | ||
| Total return, 1 year | +7.7% | +13.0% |
| Drawdown | ||
| Index fall to the buffer | 15.2% | 15.4% |
| Benchmark | ||
| What it tracks | SPY | SPY |
| Cost and size | ||
| Expense ratio | 0.74% | 0.85% |
| Net assets, as of Nov 3, 2026 | $54m | $425m |
| Holdings | ||
| Holdings in common | not published | |
How much of a bear-market fall the buffer would absorb from today's level, ranked against 292 buffer ETFs on stocks with a live outcome period. 100 is best. How it is computed
Today's position against one 20% fall; it ignores smaller falls, and stock buffers are never ranked against bond or commodity ones. All buffer ETFs ranked by it →
Window by window
| Total return | Gap to the reference's price return | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Window | ARLU | GMAR | ARLU | GMAR |
| 3 months | −1.2% | +1.5% | −0.8 pts | +1.9 pts |
| 6 months | +2.7% | +4.0% | −1.7 pts | −0.5 pts |
| 1 year | +7.7% | +13.0% | −5.9 pts | −0.5 pts |
| 3 years | – | +41.6% | – | −34.8 pts |
| Since launchNot the same days: ARLU Apr 2024 · GMAR Mar 2023 | +29.5% | +52.6% | −17.3 pts | −42.1 pts |
Each fund's gap is to its reference's price return, dividends left out: the basis the outcome period uses. – means no data for this window. Open this comparison in the app →
Side by side
As of Nov 4, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
GMAR is already at its cap, so more rise in the index adds nothing to it before the period ends.
Where each one stands today
GMAR resets first, on Mar 19, 2027, 135 days from now; ARLU runs to Mar 31, 2027, 147 days. A fall from here reaches ARLU’s buffer after 12.1% and GMAR’s after 9.6%. Both track SPY, so what separates them is where each is in its own period.
ARLU
This fund has no cap. It takes a share of any further rise in SPY. The fund's price can fall 12.1% from here before the buffer starts absorbing losses, by the issuer's number. In index terms, SPY can fall 15.2% from today's level to the point where the buffer begins. Protection left, in index points: 15.0% of the 15.0% buffer still sits below today's SPY level. 147 days remained on Nov 4, 2026. On Mar 31, 2027 the period ends and new terms are set.
GMAR
SPY had already risen past this fund's cap of +14.1% for the period on Nov 4, 2026, so in index terms there is no more upside to collect. The fund's own price can still drift up to about 3.3% as the period runs out. The fund's price can fall 9.6% from here before the buffer starts absorbing losses, by the issuer's number. In index terms, SPY can fall 15.4% from today's level to the point where the buffer begins. 135 days remained on Nov 4, 2026. On Mar 19, 2027 the period ends and a new cap is set.
Questions people ask
Links are sources, not endorsements. A comparison is not a recommendation.
How this is computed
It is a place in a set, not a rating or a recommendation.
ETFIQ calculates every number from each issuer’s published outcome-period terms. Buffer ETFs hold options on an index, not shares, so there is no holdings overlap to report.
Every number is an ETFIQ calculation with distributions reinvested.
Cite this pageCitation, APA and Markdown
ETFIQ, ARLU against GMAR, data as of Nov 4, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/buffer/arlu-vs-gmar
ETFIQ. (Nov 4, 2026). ARLU against GMAR. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/buffer/arlu-vs-gmar
[ARLU against GMAR (ETFIQ, Nov 4, 2026)](https://etfiq.com/compare/buffer/arlu-vs-gmar)
Free to use with attribution for data ETFIQ computes; issuer data stays under its owner's terms.